Remote Observatories for Amateur Astronomers: Using High-Powered Telescopes from Home PDF
Preview Remote Observatories for Amateur Astronomers: Using High-Powered Telescopes from Home
Gerald R. Hubbell · Richard J. Williams Linda M. Billard Remote Observatories for Amateur Astronomers Using High-Powered Telescopes from Home The Patrick Moore The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/3192 Remote Observatories for Amateur Astronomers Using High-Powered Telescopes from Home Gerald R. Hubbell Richard J. Williams Linda M. Billard Gerald R. Hubbell Richard J. Williams Locust Grove , VA , USA Markleeville , CA , USA Linda M. Billard Fredericksburg , VA , USA ISSN 1431-9756 ISSN 2197-6562 (electronic) The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series ISBN 978-3-319-21905-9 ISBN 978-3-319-21906-6 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-21906-6 Library of Congress Control Number: 2015948254 Springer Cham Heidelberg New York Dordrecht London © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2015 T his work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifi cally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfi lms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specifi c statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. T he publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. Cover Illustration by Rachel Konopa Printed on acid-free paper S pringer International Publishing AG Switzerland is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) Foreword I by Scott W. Roberts The purpose of an astronomical observatory is to contain the instrumentation that allows astronomers to observe and make measurements of the cosmos. They are often built—sometimes at great cost—in places that are the most optimum for the best observations, with today’s observatories located both on land and in space for the use of professional and amateur astronomers. At the very least, observatories are built to make repeatable observations routine and convenient. In fact, some specialized observations can only be made from particular observatories with very specific equipment and/or locations. U pon reading this book, you might feel that the advanced technologies we pro- fessional and amateur astronomers use every day to make and record scientific observations have reached new, unprecedented heights. And yet most certainly, many more peaks of innovation and discovery will be conquered at a pace that perhaps will leave even us—who are now quite accustomed to the breakneck pace of technology and our nearly continuous new discoveries about the universe we live in—uncomfortably numb. We know that astronomical observatories were developed at least 10,000 years ago. And we could perhaps infer from what we are learning about humanity that the development leading to the building of Zorats Karer (in present-day Armenia), built in the sixth millennium BC, and Stonehenge, built in the second millennium BC more than 2600 miles away, that there are probably other ancient observatories yet to be discovered. You could argue that without observatories, humanity might not have survived at all. Without accurate determinations of the changes of the seasons, accurate calendars to segment our orbits around the Sun, and accuracy of segmenting a v vi Foreword I single day, humanity might have been utterly lost and defenseless against the rav- ages of nature and perhaps even each other. The permanent placement of astro- nomical instrumentation in observatories allows repeatable and reliable measurements of the Sun, the planets, and the stars. Observatories are centers of higher learning, providing a stage for scientists from which they can disseminate the collected data and what has been learned from it to the scientific community and to the public at large. Indeed, observatories are the vehicles that we developed to help us navigate and advance civilization and are as important to humanity as any invention that we have ever created. And today, all of the elements required to make a cutting-edge, high- technology, computer-controlled telescope and observatory system operated from anywhere on the planet through the Internet are within reach of dedicated amateur astronomers. What has been missing is a comprehensive guide for putting it all together. Remote Observatories for Amateur Astronomers: Using High-Powered Telescopes from Home, written by Jerry Hubbell, Rich Williams, and Linda Billard, is a unique contribution centering on computer-controlled private observatories owned by ama- teur astronomers and commercialized professional–amateur observatories where observing time to collect data can be purchased. The methodical approach to o perating a modern computer-controlled observatory and the discipline of critical thinking in pursuit of developing an astronomical imaging system (AIS) make this book a perfect companion to Hubbell’s first book, S cientific Astrophotography: How Amateurs Can Generate and Use Professional Imaging Data and is available from the same publisher. Until the development of this book, trying to piece together all of the necessary elements and processes that make up a remotely operated observatory was daunt- ing. The authors and contributors have provided, in this single publication, a wealth of information gained from years of experience that will save you considerable money and countless hours in trying to develop such an observatory. In these pages, you will be guided step-by-step through developing your observing plan design basis (OPDP), which will drive the selection of equipment to build the observatory. You’ll also learn the discipline of “defense-in-depth and diversity” to maximize up-time and mitigate the possibility of a catastrophic fail- ure while you are operating the observatory, possibly from a great distance, through your computer. T his book will make you take a hard look at the associated costs of making observations from a remote observatory. You will be able to weigh the pros and cons of building your own observatory versus buying observing time from a com- mercial facility. After careful consideration, you may find that your observing plan can be optimized by blending data collection from your own private observatory and a commercial observatory. A mateur astronomers who understand how to properly collect and reduce sci- ence data can open up chances for themselves to access large telescopes and inter- act in the professional astronomy community. It should also be pointed out that Foreword I vii there even are opportunities (albeit rare) for amateurs to be granted time on profes- sional observatories. For example, in 1992, observing submissions from six ama- teur astronomers were selected by the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) that were carried out on the Hubble Space Telescope. The last section of this book presents an array of examples of work done by amateurs, professionals, and educators using remotely controlled observatories to achieve their observing goals. There is abundant inspiration there for you. If you follow the methods and processes laid out in this book and choose to build your own remotely operated observatory or become a regular user of one of the commercial networks, you will not only join an elite group of advanced astrono- mers who make regular submissions to science but also become a member of an ancient fraternity. Your high-technology observatory will contain a “high-powered telescope” no matter how large it is, and from the comfort of home, you can actively contribute to the work that started in pre-history to help uncover the secrets of the cosmos. Explore Scientifi c, LLC Scott W. Roberts Springdale , AR , USA June 2015 Foreword II— A Historical Perspective by Russell M. Genet, Ph.D. The Fairborn Observatory: An Early Remote Observatory I n the past three and a half decades, since I first became involved with remote obser- vatories, the use of remote, unmanned telescopes at fully automated observatories has advanced from a very rare approach for making astronomical observations to an increasingly dominant mode for observation among both professional and amateur astronomers. I am very pleased to see this timely book being published on the topic. I highly recommend this book to readers because it not only covers the knowledge needed to become an informed user of existing remote observatories but also describes what you need to know to develop your own remote observatory. This book draws on more than two decades of remote observatory operation and networking by coauthor Richard Williams as he developed the Sierra Stars Observatory Network (SSON) into the world-class network it is today. This book is the ideal follow-on to coauthor Jerry Hubbell’s book S cientific Astrophotography (Springer 2012). A s both a research astronomer and educator, I have a keen interest in involving my students in astronomical research. My Astronomy Research Seminar, offered through Cuesta College, provides both undergraduate and high school student teams an opportunity to plan, conduct, write up, and present a modest-scale, ix
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